When Kiara Smith opened the doors of her family-owned business, Fresh & Pressed Juice, in Troy, Michigan, it was not just the marker of an entrepreneurial dream realized after her son developed a microbiome deficiency nearly five years ago.
Born out of a desire to restore the glimmer and energy of a young child, Smith’s passion for nutrition and wellness now serves both her dedicated online following as well as her in-store customers who come for the juices but leave with a new lease on living their best lives.
“This is a
community-based situation. This is not just, come in and pay for these expensive premium juices,” she told the (Detroit) Metro Times. “No, you’re gonna get a juice, you’re gonna nourish your body and your soul, and you’re gonna learn something in the process, because I want to share what I know.”The 34-year-old wife and mother of two took the road less traveled to help heal her son’s digestive concerns, opting for natural remedies.
“It was a really awful experience, a little 2-year-old in the back seat bent over screaming ‘My stomach hurts!’ every single day,” Smith recalled. “As a mom, I wanted to resolve that, like this cannot be [his] life. He can’t be in pain every day.”
Healing her son with the use of organic fruits and vegetables turned into a mission to help others restore their health from the inside out.
Customers at Fresh & Pressed marvel at the meticulous detail the former stay-at-home mom has squeezed into every ounce of the experience, including the names of the juices that double as affirmations.
“Affirmations are big in our household,” Smith said. “Every night and every morning I want to remind my children that they are worthy, successful, and unique.”
With fad diets, risky weight-loss surgeries, and a lack of proper nutritional education plaguing our communities, Smith is leaning on the power of positive self-talk to create lasting change for her growing number of supporters.
“When we decide to drink fresh and organic juices we are choosing self-care and I want to remind people that they are worthy and deserving because sometimes we can forget those things,” she told Black Enterprise
exclusively. “The names on the juice bottles are constant reminders that you are great and doing great things for yourself, even if it’s just choosing one healthier option a day.”Starting in the fall, Smith plans to host monthly community events at Fresh & Pressed to further cement her dedication to making healthy lifestyle choices accessible for everyone. However, what the native Detroiter has already poured into the foundation of her family-friendly brand’s success is a heavy dose of focused intentionality and a whole lot of love.